


Something I Remembered

by Lacy_Star



Category: Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: AU, Angst, Drabble, Dream SMP 2, Gen, Manipulative Tendencies, That's what im calling it, dream is a better person but he's not a Better Person, memory au, no beta we die like george in manhunt, this is all rp characters
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-13
Updated: 2020-12-13
Packaged: 2021-03-10 22:28:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,845
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28044702
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lacy_Star/pseuds/Lacy_Star
Summary: What if you were God and you destroyed the world? What if you turned everyone you loved against you and dug your heel into the ground until all that was left of the earth were craters and graves?And what if you were allowed a reset? What if you could look out on the carnage and choose to start over with a clean slate, where nobody remembered your past actions and nobody could hold you accountable?Would you do what you did before? Or would you do everything in your power to prevent a repeat of your past mistake?Dream's trying for the latter, but people won't stop leaving him.---AKA: An AU taking place during Dream SMP 2, where the world's a clean slate and nobody remembers the events of the first SMP except for Wilbur and Dream, who are desperately trying to keep things peaceful.
Relationships: Clay | Dream & GeorgeNotFound & Sapnap (Video Blogging RPF), Zak Ahmed & Darryl Noveschosch
Comments: 10
Kudos: 176





	Something I Remembered

**Author's Note:**

> Some last notes on this au:
> 
> 1\. Dream remembers because he's the god and creators of the smps. Wilbur remembers because, in his rebirth, he gained back his memories that Ghostbur lost.  
> 2\. because rumors have been circling about smp 2 happening because of the cliffs and caves update, you'll see that this fic takes place in caves as kind of a post-apocalyptic thing from the first smp. it doesn't make sense just roll with it.
> 
> and to be safe
> 
> CONTENT WARNING: dream still displays manipulative tendencies in his thoughts, though he doesn't act on any of them. be careful when u read.
> 
> Please do not plagiarize or steal any of my work.

"So..." Dream said, "Let me get this straight. You’re… you want to go?”

Bad was giving him a toothy grin, arm linked with Skeppy’s. “Yeah! Not far. Just to a cave a bit away. We’d still visit.”

Dream’s mouth felt dry. When he spoke, his voice echoed through the cave. That never used to happen. There used to be enough people so that one’s voice would easily get lost if they didn’t talk loud enough over the hubbub. Or, so that even in the night, the bodies laid all around would muffle the echo. Now, Dream heard his voice reflected back at him from a thousand angles, and he hated how he could hear its own wobble. How unfitting for a god. “And what will you call it?”

Bad and Skeppy glanced at each other. Still smiling, Bad said, “We were thinking… the Brightlands.”

Thank god for the mask. So long as he could keep his mouth a steady line, and made sure his voice didn’t betray him, they wouldn’t be able to see the distraught look in his eyes. “That’s… that’s a good name.”

“Puffy’s coming too!” Skeppy chirped. Of course she was.

Bad pulled away from him to grab Dream by the arms, and Dream wanted to recoil and ask  _ why? I did everything right, why are you still leaving? _ but also melt into him and beg  _ please don’t go, I was good this time, I don’t think I can let another person go. _

“Is… that okay, Dream?” Bad asked.

Dream hadn’t minded the first time when they’d left. That was okay. This was different. This wasn’t going to plan. If he let people go, surely then they’d realize how much better it was with him? They’d turn around and say, “that was a nice vacation, do you mind if we crash at your place again?” And Dream would welcome them with open arms. Surely they’d been meant to come back. Surely they would come back any day now. Of course, he’d had visitors, but none had stayed. But Bad was different. Bad  _ had _ to come back, right?

He wondered, distantly, if this was how Tommy had felt in his exile.

These days, whenever the kid teased him, he just sat and took it and felt sick to his stomach. It had gotten so bad that one day, after tons of jabs at Dream’s green-ness, Tommy had paused and had seriously said, “Big D, is everything okay?”

And it hadn’t been okay. Dream had wanted to grab Tommy there and hold him to his chest and hiss  _ you have to stay. You can’t leave the cave anymore. You belong to me. You’re all supposed to be mine. _ But instead he’d just nodded and said, “Yeah, just tired. Why don’t you go bug Big Q, Tommy?” And even Tommy didn’t believe that excuse. Surely he’d noticed how the god wouldn’t even meet his eyes these days.

But anything to prevent a repeat. That was one of the rules Wilbur and him had agreed upon: no lava around Tommy.

Bad broke him out of his daze. “Dream?”

Dream blinked awake. Bad was getting suspicious. Bad was a good friend of his, he’d be able to tell if something was off. But Dream felt like his mind was working at a million miles an hour.

“One condition,” He blurted, “You can leave on one condition.”

Skeppy and Bad exchanged a glance. At least, Dream thought they did. It was hard to see through both the tears and the mask.

“Yyyeah?” Skeppy asked

“If… If you see any red vines?” Dream swallowed the tremor in his voice, “You come to me immediately. You don’t wait around. Even if they’re small and you think it's no big deal… even if it's centimeters long, I want to know about it immediately. You  _ have _ to come back. Got it?”

His voice had gone fierce at the end, and Bad, poor, sensitive Bad, looked at him in fear. Normally, Dream _ loved _ when people looked at him like that. But not Bad. Anyone but bad.

“… Okay,” Bad agreed nervously, letting his hands fall away, and Dream wanted to reach out and pull them back.

Instantly he softened, “Sorry, just…”

“Why?” Skeppy asked, because of course he did.

_ Because I don’t know how many resets I have. Because all of you, as entertaining as you are, are so fucking fragile it’s insane. _

“... They’re uh,” Dream swallowed, “They’re new. They’re like… withered. Hurt like a muffin if you touch them. Mess up your head.”

Bad nodded, eyes darting to the side like he was committing this to memory. “Yeah, okay! We’ll let you know if we see anything.” Skeppy nodded in agreement.

“Yeah…” Dream fidgeted with the cuffs of his own sleeves. “Um… Come back and give me a tour, once it’s done. Promise?” How whiny did  _ that  _ sound? 

But Bad just smiled. “Of course! Aw, I’m gonna miss you so much,” He leaned forward and hugged Dream tight, and Dream hugged right back. He savoured it more than he was sure he’d ever savoured a hug before.

It ended sooner than Dream would’ve liked, and Bad pulled back. Skeppy moved forward and clapped Dream gratefully on the shoulder. “We’ll see you around, dude.”

“Yep,” Dream hoarsely agreed.

And with a “goodbye!” Skeppy and Bad walked off, backs to Dream, out to the exit, blocked by doors and doors of iron as a precaution. 

Dream panicked as they faded, and like a lost dog dog calling desperately for its owner, he barked, “Fuck!”

And came back a soft, echoed, “Language!” Which made him smile through a borderline sob, and he listened to the echo, holding to it, until it tapered out.

He stood there a long minute, just staring at the empty cave. This wasn’t meant to feel so awful. This was supposed to be better.

“Dream?”

He didn’t turn to face George. “I’ll be there in a minute.”

But George knew him far too well. “What’s wrong?”

Dream laughed hollowly, raising a hand to swipe at his eyes under his mask, as quickly as he could. “Nothing.”

“Liar.”

George wrapped his arms over Dream’s shoulders and Dream leaned on him heavily. “Did you hear Bad and Skeppy and Puffy are gone?”

“Oh…” He could hear the frown in George’s voice. “I did. You let them go?”

“I don’t control where people go. I don’t give a shit,” Dream huffed, which sounded atrocious to hear coming out of his own mouth. Who even was he anymore?

George recoiled at the tone. Sometimes Dream wished he was a mute. “Clearly you do.”

Dream didn’t respond. There was a question that had lingered in the back of his mind for weeks. One he’d never bothered to entertain, despite its presence. Because his friends would never leave.

But if  _ Bad _ , one of his dearest friends, would leave him behind, who was to say George wouldn’t?

“... I kinda prefer it like this,” George said quietly, “Well, maybe not without Bad. I really liked having him here but…”

Dream laughed sharply. “You prefer being alone like this?”

“... It’s calm here. I like when it’s calm. And I like when you’re not so stressed with dealing with everyone.” George shrugged, “I like when you’re calm.”

“Yeah, well…”

“Clearly you’re not,” George sighed. “What I mean is- I like everyone, of course, but… They’re not like  _ gone _ gone, you know? I like when its just you and Sapnap and I.”

“You do?” Dream sounded stupidly hopeful. He couldn’t tear his eyes from the darkness where Bad and Skeppy had disappeared from.

“Yeah!”

George was his best friend. He could say anything to him. “... So… you won’t leave too?”

“ _ What _ ?” George sounded almost offended, “Are you joking? No way! What would I do out there without you?” He laughed, shaking his head, “I could never leave you. Unless you want me to. But, well, I guess you don’t, right Dream? Dream…? Dream, are you-”

Dream whirled around and grabbed George, pulling him close to his chest tightly. He wanted to choke him. He wanted to strangle him. He needed this. He was pathetic.

George hesitated before returning the embrace. “You didn’t… think I was  _ gonna _ , right?”

Dream didn’t trust his voice.

“You idiot,” George huffed gently.

Dream heard Sapnap hover nearby hesitantly. “... Is everything okay?”

“Bad left,” George explained, craning his neck in Dream’s grip to look at him.

“I saw. Is he…?” Sapnap asked, clearly referring to Dream.

“He thinks we’re gonna leave too.”

“ _ What _ ?” Sapnap neared, resting a hand on Dream’s back. “What’s wrong with him?”

“Don’t know,” George chuckled.

“Nope. Sorry, Dream.” Sapnap wrapped an arm around him, and Dream dared break away slightly from George to lean into him too. Sapnap pressed closer. At this point they were both practically holding him up. His crutches. They really were. “You’re just gonna have to let me annoy you.”

“Yeah, we’re not going anywhere,” George promised.

_ They weren’t going anywhere.  _ And they meant it. And Dream had never felt such crushing relief.

A long time ago, near the start, he’d asked Wilbur, who was being annoyingly positive and pacifist, “ _ What’s the point? What’s it all for? _ ”

And Wilbur, before going to join Fundy to go fishing, and a sparring session with Techno, and some fireworks with Phil and Tommy and Tubbo, had responded, “ _ Them. _ ”

And now Dream understood. Fuck, he’d give it all to just keep these two. He  _ had  _ given it all up for them, and it had worked. He’d done it. It was the hardest damn thing, but he’d done it. He’d never have to worry about their scorn or disappointment again. It was okay. He’d done good.  _ They were okay _ .

“... Dream, are you crying?” Sapnap asked, and Dream realized his sobbing had gotten a tad too loud to play off.

“What’s wrong?” George asked gently, more gently than Dream deserved.

If only he could say. If only he could say how he’d burned his last dollhouse and how much of a damn fucking  _ miracle _ that he’d managed to refurbish the dolls. How he’d destroyed everyone and everything. Because no matter what blame was placed on whom for what war, it was all him. It was  _ his _ world.

If only he could say. If only he could tell Sapnap that he’d never meant to neglect him like he had before and that he was so important that he’d give up nations worth of people to have him at his side. If only he could tell George that, in his eyes, he was king. He would  _ always  _ be king. That if George asked for the sun, Dream would go above ground and tie a lead and pull and pull and pull, because George was the king of the SMP, and who was he to disagree?

If only he could say that he’d fucked up, ruined lives, and that they should probably still hate him a little.

But he couldn’t. They could never know. So instead he just swallowed, shook his head, and softly said, “... Nothing. Just something I remembered.”

**Author's Note:**

> Check out my [Tumblr](https://lacystar.tumblr.com)!


End file.
